Every yr ends with acold moon — the name yield to a full moonshine that appears in December . The fullcold moonthat ’s lighting up skies in 2019 will come in with a incentive spectacle for sky - gazers . AsForbesreports , a planetary " kiss " between Saturn and Venus will cooccur with the last full lunar month of the year . Here ’s what you necessitate to know about the astronomical effect .
What is a Full Cold Moon Kiss?
The full lunar month of each month has a unique cognomen associated with the time of yr it happen . A cold moonshine happens as temperature drop and wintertime settee in , hence the name . December ’s full moon has also been call thelong night moonby some aboriginal American tribe and themoon Before Yulein Europe , according toTravel and Leisure .
This year ’s moonshine will be seeable the night of December 11 through the morning of December 12 . On this same night , the planet Venus and Saturn will seem tight than usual in the night sky . The supernal dead body will be less than 2 ° apart and apportion a supernal longitude , a phenomena known as aconjunctionor a world-wide " kiss . "
How to See the Full Cold Moon Kiss
During twilight on Tuesday , December 10 , the brilliant satellite Venus and the dimmer planet Saturn will make it at their closest conjunction , 1.8 ° aside , above the southwestern horizon . The following evening , they ’ll be just .01 ° further aside . Stick around the nighttime of Wednesday , December 11 to catch the full moth-eaten moon , which reaches tip elucidation at 9:12 p.m. on the West Coast and at 12 minute of arc after midnight on the East Coast .
Not design on staying up late to see the moon reach its total land ? Moonrise on December 11 will be just as spectacular . When the moon surfaces around sunset , it will appearlarger and more reddishin color in the sky . Meanwhile , Venus ’s and Saturn ’s kiss will be visible 180º away .
[ h / tForbes ]
